Draw No Bet Betting Term Meaning

Draw No Bet is the name of a football betting market commonly offered by most online bookmakers. You can think of it as a type of insurance policy on match results with your stake refunded if the match ends in a draw.

The ‘Draw No Bet’ betting market removes the risk of losing your stake to a draw. This allows you to back either the home or away team without having to worry whether or not a last-minute equaliser will ruin your punt. 

This market has risen in popularity over the last few years as savvy punters have found the risk of big-money wagers or large accumulators being reduced by covering the ‘draw’ option of a match result. The reason being that if a draw occurs your stake will be returned in full. Draw No Bet markets are best used in games that you think will be close encounters.

For instance, league matches between teams that are evenly balanced are extremely difficult to predict such as West Ham United vs Everton in the EPL. This is the Match Result market odds that Ladbrokes are offering:

These are the odds for the Draw No Bet market from the same bookmaker:

The cost of insurance against a draw if betting on West Ham can be calculated as: 2.50 - 1.80 = 0.70 (£0.70 for every £1 wagered). For Everton, it is £0.75 for every £1 wagered. These are the possible outcomes from this bet:

As a punter, you will look for the risk-reward value of the bet. A £10 bet on West Ham in the match result market would return £25, but if the match is a draw or Everton win, you lose your stake. The Draw No Bet option only returns £18 on a £10 stake but you get your cash back if the game does end all square.

The key difference between the two is that with double chance markets your bet will win in full if you cover the correct outcome.

This is a further trade-off. You are losing value on West Ham/Everton winning, but of course, gaining value if the match ends in a draw. 

Draw No Bet selections can also be combined together to create doubles, trebles or accumulator (also known as parlay) bets. The major advantage of doing this is that your odds will increase. Here’s an example of a multiple:

This bet has combined odds of @3.46. Therefore, a £20 stake would return £69.30 if all selections win. If one selection ends in a draw, that match is void and the stake rolls over to the next. The accumulator is smaller but it is alive.